2025 Toyota Highlander: Too new to judge

1. Steering10% · 1 complaints
2. Speed control30% · 3 complaints
3. Driver assistance20% · 2 complaints
4. Electrical10% · 1 complaints
5. Brakes20% · 2 complaints
6. Engine10% · 1 complaints
7. Seats and belts10% · 1 complaints
8. Visibility10% · 1 complaints
9. Other20% · 2 complaints

Bars rank problem areas by complaints weighted for severity (crashes, fires, injuries and deaths count more). A complaint can name more than one area. Mileage is reported on about half of complaints.

• NHTSA 26V128000March 2026686,588 vehicles

  Seats: mid/rear assembly: recliner

  Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2021-2025 Highlander and Highlander Hybrid vehicles. The second-row seat backs may fail to lock into position during seat back adjustment.

  Risk: A seat back that fails to lock may not properly restrain an occupant during a crash, increasing the risk of injury.

  Fix: Dealers will replace the return springs in the seat back recliner assemblies, free of charge.

• NHTSA 25V872000December 202539 vehicles

  Seat belts: rear/other: anchorage

  Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2024-2025 Highlander and Highlander Hybrid vehicles. The third row center seat belt roof anchor may have been installed at an incorrect angle, preventing the seat belt from properly restraining the occupant.

  Risk: A seat belt that does not properly restrain an occupant increases the risk of injury during a crash.

  Fix: Dealers will reinstall the seat belt anchor with a new bolt, free of charge.

• NHTSA 25V744000October 20251,024,407 vehicles

  Back over prevention: display function

  Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2022-2026 Toyota, Lexus, and Subaru Solterra vehicles equipped with a Panoramic View Monitor (PVM) system. Please see the recall report for a complete list of models. A software error may cause the rearview camera to freeze or display a blank screen when the vehicle is in reverse. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) number 111, "Rear Visibility."

  Risk: A rearview camera that fails to display an image can reduce the driver's view behind the vehicle, increasing the risk of a crash.

  Fix: Dealers will update the parking assist software, free of charge.

• NHTSA 25V595000September 2025591,377 vehicles

  Electrical system: instrument cluster/panel

  Toyota Motor Engineering & Manufacturing (Toyota) is recalling certain 2023-2024 Toyota Venza, 2023-2025 RAV4 Prime, RAV4, Highlander, GR Corolla, Crown, 2024-2025 Lexus TX, LS, Toyota Tacoma, Grand Highlander, and 2025 Lexus RX, Toyota Crown Signia, Camry, RAV 4 Plug-in Hybrid (PHEV), and 4 Runner vehicles. Due to an error in the instrument panel software at vehicle startup, the instrument panel may fail to display vehicle speed, brake system, and tire pressure warning lights.

  Risk: An instrument panel display that does not show critical information can increase the risk of a crash or injury.

  Fix: Dealers will update the instrument panel software over-the-air (OTA) for non-PHEV vehicles, free of charge.

A recall only helps if the repair was done. Enter the vehicle's 17-character VIN on NHTSA's official recall lookup before you buy.

Toyota sent NHTSA 40 service bulletins and other notices to dealers covering the 2025 Highlander. These are repair instructions, not recalls. Warranty extensions and bulletins about its top problem areas:

• T-SB-0110-20 Rev2 · August 2026OBSOLETE NOTICE August 20, 2026: This bulletin is now obsolete.
• T-SB-0040-24 Rev1 · June 2026Some 2020 – 2026 model year Highlander and Highlander Hybrid vehicles may exhibit a water leak from the roof rack attachment clips.
• T-SB-0055-24 Rev2 · January 2026Some 2005 – 2026 Toyota vehicles that have undergone water intrusion may exhibit a condition in which a musty odor is present.
• T-SB-0083-25 · November 2025A new head unit software update is available for 2022 – 2025 model year Tundra, and Tundra Hybrid; 2023 – 2025 model year Corolla Cross, Corolla Cross Hybrid, Highlander, Highlander Hybrid, Mirai,…
• T-SB-0058-23 Rev1 · June 2025The air conditioning dye injection tool kit has been developed to aid in identifying the location of air conditioning refrigerant leaks.
• T-TT-0779-25 · April 2025To assist with the early detection and early resolution of audio related concerns you may be asked to recover MMR data from the head unit.
• T-SB-0013-24 Rev1 · February 2025The Immobilizer and Smart Key Reset is a feature that allows the registration of new keys when all master keys are lost.
• T-SB-0021-25 · February 2025Flash reprogramming allows the Electronic Control Unit (ECU) software to be updated without replacing the ECU.

All 2025 Highlander bulletins on NHTSA ›

Questions owners ask

Is the 2025 Toyota Highlander reliable?

The 2025 Toyota Highlander has been on the road for 23 months, short of the five years we need to rate it. Owners have filed 10 complaints with NHTSA so far. That's 0.8× the rate other Highlander years drew in their first 23 months, per vehicle sold. Ratings compare Highlander years with each other using complaints filed with NHTSA; they don't measure every problem owners have.

What are the most common 2025 Highlander problems?

Owners' complaints most often involve the steering (10%), speed control (30%) and driver-assistance features and cameras (20%). A complaint can name more than one area.

Has the 2025 Toyota Highlander been recalled?

Yes. NHTSA lists 4 recall campaigns for the 2025 Toyota Highlander, the most recent in March 2026 (seats). Enter the vehicle's VIN on NHTSA's recall lookup to see whether the repairs were done.